Backup
by amix4
Summary: Right after episode 3.4 Karma has gone back to find her dad and mom. Amy is in the waiting room by herself, The whole gang rallies to support them.
1. Chapter 1

Amy sat down in the waiting room and text her mom what's going on. Then she text Lauren and, Shane and Liam, and Felix. does my phone do 5-way texting? 4 people? How do I have 4 people who would care to know I'm sitting in the hospital waiting room with my used-to-be-bff-but-we're-not-really-anymore person? Having 4 people to text during a crisis, hashtag squad goals, is that still a thing? We could get t-shirts, like the ones with the names and ampersands… Gah… Karma's dad is in the hospital, and I'm thinking about t shirts and hashtags?

Amy chased random thoughts around her brain for a few more moments, until the sound of multiple texts arriving drew her back out of the rabbit hole.

Amy: Karma's dad had a heart attack, I'm at the hospital with her. He's still in with the Drs.  
Liam: How's Karma taking it? Is she okay? Should I drive down? Do you need a ride anywhere?  
Lauren: Did they give him an ECG? Have they catheterized him? What doctor is he seeing? Is he admitted yet?  
Felix: Should I bring you guys some food?  
Shane: Fuck. Do you need some backup?

Backup. They may not be popular (whatever that means…), but she and Karma have backup now.

Amy: You know all I know. Probably should stay away for a little while, don't want to overwhelm Karma and her mom. Standby.

Amy's mind started racing again, and she knew if she didn't DO something soon, her thoughts would go to a place they shouldn't. So she got up and walked to the nurses' station, they couldn't tell her anything, she's not family. She walked over to the vending machines. Some refined sugar would distract her; patted her pockets for change, no luck. Her stomach growled. Maybe she should take Felix up on the offer of food. She did another lap of the waiting room. Fuck. What does this mean? Are we going to forget everything that's happened? How do I support Karma without getting my heart stomped on? Would I even know if my dad was in the ER with a heart attack? How can I think of myself in a time like this? She did another lap; her phone beeped.

Lauren: I'm coming down. You can't do this alone.

Lauren would be the most helpful. She knows how to handle this kind of shit. No know-it-all doctor will intimidate her.

Amy: Ok, thanks.

Lauren showed up a few minutes later. Amy had done 6 laps by then. "Hey, sit down." Amy obediently followed her command. Lauren was pecking away on her phone, apparently another group text excluding Amy had been created. Backup.

"Felix is bringing food. I called doctor Cohen, he's golfs with daddy. He says the guys on ER duty tonight are good. Liam and Shane went to Karma's to pick up some clothes for her and her mom and dad." The image of Liam looking through Karma's underwear drawer passed through her mind, hopefully Shane takes the lead on that front.

"Are you sure we should have that many people, teenagers, here?" Amy nodded at the butch nurse behind the desk, the name Ratched came to mind. Does that make her Murphy? Or Chief? Seriously, Raudenfeld, focus.

"They're not going to stay. Farrah said everyone can camp out at our house." Amy nodded, and sat in silence for a second, surprised and glad that Lauren didn't fill it, "thank you, Lauren."

Lauren smiled, she'd done the right thing, she thought. If there's one thing a lifetime of doctor visits for her own medical bullshit, plus her mom's cancer, and her grandpa's heart attack had taught her, it was how to be with a friend in the ER.

The sliding doors swooshed, it was Felix. "Okay, I brought half a dozen krispy kremes, two cups of coffee: red eye for you, latte for Karma. A couple sandwiches and two huge bags of waffle fries. They emptied the thing for me." How Felix was holding all that, Amy wasn't sure, but those donuts were going to die a horrible death on this shitty hospital carpet if she didn't help him. They got the food safely to the coffee table, which Lauren had cleared 20 issues of People magazine from.

Amy and Felix exchanged a thank you glance. He was like Karma in that way, Amy didn't have to say anything for him to know how much she appreciated his food delivery.

"This is great Felix, thanks." Lauren said, with total sincerity.

He had never gotten a genuine thanks from Lauren before, Felix realized. "No big deal. I think Liam and Shane are right behind me. I've got a bunch more sandwiches and stuff I'll take back to your place." He hesitated, "Let me get out of the way. See you back there. Pass this hug along to Karma." Felix hugged Amy tightly, in a way she imagined a big brother would. He awkwardly patted Lauren's shoulder. Lauren rolled her eyes, sensitive types were always scared of her.

"Don't worry, I didn't let Liam pick out Karma's underwear." Shane said to announce their arrival. He plopped down next to Amy, "But let me tell you, that hemp crap her parents wear must fucking itch." Amy rolled her eyes and chuckled. Shane looked very pleased with himself.

"Shane." Lauren glared at him.

"What? I'm being supportive, Amy almost laughed."

Lauren and Liam exchanged would-you-get-him-out-of-here! I'm-working-on-it-chill-out! glares. Liam pulled Shane out of the chair. "We'll be back at your place," he said as he steered Shane and Felix out the sliding door.


	2. Chapter 2

Amy was downing her second donut when Karma walked back in the waiting room. Amy took a deep breath, and held it, she didn't know what to say. Lauren did, "Karma, how is he? Sit down." Lauren gestured at the empty seat on the vinyl couch next to Amy. Lauren sat down across from them, on the other side of the mountain of food.

"Um, Felix brought food, do you want a sandwich? There's a latte here too, and..." Amy trailed off and took a sip of her own coffee, to cease the babbling. Amy looked to Lauren, She took Lauren's expression it to mean, I got her food and clothing, Karma's emotions are your department. So Amy shifted in her seat to get a little bit closer, and took Karma's hand, she felt her relax. Amy resisted the urge to kiss Karma's forehead as they snuggled in. Boundaries had to be kept. Lauren let the silence continue, as much as the awkwardness was killing her. Karma finally mumbled, "Mom said she'd be here in a few." Lauren stood up, "It's been a while, I'll go find her," she was thankful for something to do.

Feeling a little abandoned, Amy tried the food route again, "You sure you don't want your latte? It's getting cold." Karma sat up straight and took a sip of the now luke-warm latte. Amy handed her a donut too. Her appetite discovered, Karma picked up a sandwich and handed the bag of fries to Amy. They ate in silence until there was only a handful of fries left. Full of fast food courage, Amy said, "did they let you see your dad?"

"Yeah, he's really tired," Karma answered, please keep talking, Amy thought. "They did some tests, and are going to keep him here for now," Karma continued. "I had to get out of there, my mom is freaking out and freaking me out. The nurse had to beg her to get out of Dad's room."

Amy said weakly, "Your mom's always been a worrier, you know, she'll chill out soon," Amy always figured the reason Karma was such a planner was because Molly and Lucas didn't plan, ever. "Oh hey, if you need to stay over, Liam and Shane brought you guys toothbrushes and a change of clothes, it's right here, if you need it." She kicked one of the duffle bags under the table.

"Shane and Liam were here?" Amy nodded. Karma was lucky to have such good friends, for sure. She needed to make sure she thanked them for sticking with her through this. It was good to have backup.

"That's okay?" Amy's insecurities started bubbling up. I shouldn't let Lauren take over like this, she thought.

"Of course," Karma saw the worry on Amy's face, her questions must've sounded kind of accusatory. "Of course, thanks for letting them know. And thanks for getting all this together, I'm so lucky to have friends like you guys." Karma's thoughts drifted back to her dad laying in the hospital room, he looked so sick, it was scary. But having Amy here, and knowing her friends had her back, made her feel a little less worried.

Lauren's voice brought Karma out of her thoughts, "How long do you need to keep him for observation? Is he going to stay in this room or be moved someplace else? What about his family? Can they stay with him?" Lauren and Molly were walking into the waiting room with a very annoyed looking nurse. Karma got up and hugged her mom, who sobbed into her shoulder as they embraced. Amy cautiously walked over to join them, trying to catch up with Lauren and the nurse's conversation. She took in as much of the information as she could. The heart attack was mild; he didn't need surgery right away. Specialists would see him tomorrow. He was asleep now; the nurse suggested they head home. It was going to be okay, for now, it seemed. Lauren looked confident and that reassured Amy.

Lauren turned to the nurse, "you're sure even his wife can't stay with him? It seems he'll be able to recover better with his wife by his side." Lauren wasn't going to let this go, she needed an excuse to separate her from Karma. The best situation for Karma right now was to be with her friends, not her mother.

Molly started to calm down and let go of Karma. Amy and Karma each took one of her elbows and led her to a chair. Lauren knelt in front of Molly and placed her hands on the woman's knees. She made sure they had eye contact, and said, "Molly, the nurse is going to allow you to stay in the room with Lucas tonight, if you can keep yourself composed. You need to be a supportive presence for him. Can you do that for him?"

Karma squeezed her mother's hand, and waited for her to respond. Seriously, Lauren is a freakin' hero. Where did she learn all this? Molly looked over at her, and Karma smiled as reassuring a smile as possible. Molly sat up straight and looked at the nurse, "yes, I can do that. I want to stay here." Where did all that confidence come from, Karma wondered. She lightly side-hugged her mom then got up and picked up one of the duffels the boys had brought, checked it had her mom and dad's stuff, and handed it to Molly. "Amy and Lauren got some overnight bags together for us. There's clothes and toothbrushes for both you and dad there." Lauren gave contact information to the nurse, and Amy had gone to clean up the food containers.

"I'll take mom back to the room, then meet you guys back here," she said to Lauren, and she guided Molly down the hallway.


	3. Chapter 3

Amy watched Karma walk down the hallway until she made a turn and was out of sight. She seemed to be walking taller, Amy had always teased Karma about being the shorter one, but just then, when she confidently led her mother through the hospital, she looked taller. Then, her attention turned to Lauren, giving nurse Ratchett Karma's contact information. Everything that had happened since Karma and she started faking it had made Amy less confident; she kept feeling more and more like little kid, where as Lauren and Karma were maturing right in front of Amy's eyes.

Lauren's phone beeped, "Who's that?" Amy asked her. "Liam, I was just letting him know we should be back at your place soon. They were looking for more blankets and stuff too," Lauren answered looking at her phone skeptically. "What for?" Amy asked. "I'm not sure what they're up to, it's a surprise he says. Which is worrying." Lauren grimaced and put her phone away. "You're okay with that?" Amy was confused, this is the kind of thing that would set Lauren off. "Not really, but we're all just trying to help Karma. So if the blanket fort or whatever it they're building makes Karma feel better, I'm okay with it." Amy was still thrown off by this version of Lauren. But this was definitely the Lauren they all needed at the moment.

Karma was back. She looked calmer than when she left. She flopped down across from Amy and took a cold fry out of the remaining take out bag. "Well, she's settled in. Still freaked out, but I think she's better in there where she can know he's okay, than out here. I told the nurse to call me if Mom needs anything. I think she's probably going to be asleep soon, though, she was beat."

"They're really lucky to have you, Karma," Lauren said. "Yeah, now that you've taken care of them, it's time for us to take care of you, okay," Amy said, surprised at the lack of crack or stutter in her voice. She stood up and grabbed their stuff. Amy swiped the last fry off the table, and winked at Karma who stuck her tongue out and fake glared at her. Lauren led them out the sliding doors. Amy had her hand on Karma's back a little higher than natural, because, boundaries.

As they drove home, Lauren prepped Karma for what and who was at the house. "So, Liam and Shane and Felix have been at our place with Farrah for like three hours; I'm not sure what they've been up to. We can kick the boys out whenever you want." Amy nodded along in agreement. "They've been waiting on us for three hours?" Karma asked. "Yup, you're pretty important to all of us," Amy said, "we've got serious backup now Karma." Amy leaned forward from the backseat and squeezed Karma's shoulder.

Amy text Felix to let the guys know they'd be back soon. The rest of the short ride home, Lauren and Karma discussed the pros and cons of various treatments. Amy leaned back and got lost in her own thoughts again. Is this going to be okay? I've got to make sure I keep an eye on Karma, make sure she's actually okay with what's going on. What does this mean for our friendship? Are we okay now? Amy wanted to talk to Karma, all they had done since she got back was fight and argue. But then with this, like, how can Amy have deep meaningful conversations about their relationship when Karma's dad nearly died.

"We're here," Lauren announced as they pulled up the driveway. Thank goodness the house is still in one piece, she thought to herself. I hope they haven't done anything crazy. Farrah came out to the front porch to greet them, "Oh Karma, come here," Farrah brought her in for a hug, "you can stay as long as you want, honey, whatever you need."

"The boys have been hard at work! They've baked cookies, and made pizzas," Farrah said as the four of them walked into the living room slash kitchen slash dining room, open concept, Lauren would call it. Amy smelled the fresh baked cookies, but was distracted by the huge pile of blankets and pillows laid out on the floor.


	4. Chapter 4

They'd brought down the mattresses off of Lauren and Amy's beds and the spare room, and covered them with pillows and blankets. The big flat screen from the basement had been brought to the main floor, too. It was sitting directly on the floor in front of the more Farrah approved tv and stand. What looked like halo was being played, apparently an xbox had been hooked up too.

"Hey!" Shane came over and gave Karma a big hug. "So we figured we'd just have a giant sleepover." He hugged Karma, who was still trying to take in the whole scene. "We've got everything we need, junk food, pizza, movies, xbox. I even found an old twister game in Amy's room." Liam and Felix hung back, both trying not to overwhelm Karma.

"This is amazing, guys," Amy said. "I'm impressed," said Lauren. Another compliment from Lauren, I don't know what to do with myself, thought Felix. He caught Amy's eye, she smiled at him. He felt his stomach do a flip. Then Amy's focus switched back to Karma.

Lauren shot a do-something-she's-not-talking, look at Amy. This got her brain back into gear, "hey Karms, lets go upstairs and get some pjs on, then we can try some of those great smelling cookies."

"Sounds good," Karma squeezed Amy's hand and walked toward the stairs, "but maybe cookies first," she said as she stopped at the counter full of chocolate chip and sugar cookies. Everybody laughed and gathered around the counter. Liam grabbed milk out of the fridge and glasses.

As they all munched on cookies and milk, Shane asked Karma how her dad was doing. She explained what the nurses and doctors told her. Lauren cut in a few times to explain the technical details of the tests and procedures Lucas went through. This annoyed Amy, Lauren cutting in on Karma, but Karma didn't seem to mind.

"Amy and Lauren were great in the hospital, I'm so glad you two were there," Karma side hugging Amy and raising her milk glass in Lauren's direction. "And you guys doing all this, and Felix bringing food, thank you." Amy caught Felix blushing a little bit; he's so shy. It's sweet, he's so different than Liam or Shane. Are they friends? Boy friendships, apart from the Liam/Shane bromance, are pretty hard to read. I hope it wasn't awkward for him, stuck here with those two. It _would_ be cool if they could all become friends. Her 90s sitcom fantasies were rudely interrupted by a whining Lauren.

"So, is my mattress part of your little blanket fort?" Lauren asked, her tone a little bit of a downer on the let's-cheer-up-Karma mood. "Uh..." Shane started to explain, but Felix cut in. Taking the heat. Acting like it was all his idea, even though in reality, he and Liam had acted as furniture movers carrying out Shane's vision. Lauren got more mad as Felix explained how they had looked through her closet for more pillows. Felix's floundering cracked Amy up, and she started giggling, which started Karma giggling. Then Shane and Liam caught the bug too.

"What's so funny?" Lauren demanded. If looks could kill, Amy would be dead, buried, and covered in mushrooms. What happened to supportive, I've got your back, Lauren? "Oh come on, Lauren. First of all you know this was obviously Shane's doing. Felix and Liam probably spent the entire time schlepping furniture wherever Shane pointed. Secondly, what could they have seen in your closet?" Amy took a breath. "And thirdly," Amy saw Lauren's dramatic eye roll, but pushed on. "This isn't about you or me or Shane and Liam, or Felix, it's about Karma." Lauren stormed off up the stairs. Amy made a move to follow her, then decided against it. She apologized to Karma and everyone else.

"Oh, it'll be fine, she'll come around. I think you're finally starting to understand my fights with Zen now." Her and Lauren were becoming more and more like siblings. Hopefully, they end up in a better place than Karma and Zen, Amy thought. Then she realized no one had called Zen."Wait, did you tell Zen about your dad?"

"Of course," Karma said. Molly had called Zen first Karma explained, and she'd gotten a text from him that he'd be in town tomorrow afternoon. They continued working their way through the tray of cookies for a few minutes, then Liam challenged Felix to a milk chugging contest, who could down a glass fastest. "I accept, but only if Amy joins us," Felix replied.

"O boys, you don't know what you're getting yourself into," Amy said, refilling her glass. "We'll see. Count us off Karma," Liam said, very seriously. Amy wasn't sure what this was all about, but she imagined it had something to do with Liam feeling like Felix was invading his turf somehow. And Felix was probably trying to impress Amy. Or something, who knows? Either way, there was no way she was going to let either of them win.

"Alright, first to finish the entire glass wins, Karma breaks all ties," Shane said looking each of them in the eye. "Okay, three, two, one, go!" Karma yelled. Amy tipped the glass back and swallowed the milk in one gulp and returned the glass the counter before either Felix or Liam had gotten half way through theirs. Amy spun in a circle with her arms above her head. "Three time Camp Kichi-Wawa milk chugging champ! Bow to your queen, gentlemen, bow to your queen." Liam and Felix fake bowed in Amy's direction, and they all fell into another giggle fit.

After Amy caught her breath, she figured Karma needed a break, and she needed to check on Lauren too, "so, PJs?" Amy asked her. Karma nodded, but before they headed up, Liam asked Karma for her movie choices. Something really funny was all the instructions he got. "We can work with that," Felix said. And the three guys began to put together an epic comedy playlist, with a "girl" and "boy" comedy from every decade back to the 60s.


End file.
